Power

[close] This year I am determined to not only find, but keep my joy in all that I do! Life can become so mundane, challenging and overwhelming with all that we face from day to day, both internally, and externally. Reading has long been an escape, stress reliever and joy inducing hobby in my life, and I want to share it with you! Keeping Up with the Joy is a social book club that will meet both virtually and IN PERSON, monthly; and is designed to allow space for fellowship, friendship, food and finding the joy in reading and social connection! Each book is unique in genre, but similar in that each title contains the word JOY in some form or fashion. Below is our reading list for the year! January Walking in my Joy: In These Streets by Jenifer Lewis February Black Joy: Stories of Resistance, Resilience, and Restoration by Tracey Michae’l Lewis- Giggetts March Possessing the Secrets of Joy by Alice Walker April Small Joys by Elvin James Mensah May The Joy Luck Club by Amy Tan June Black Boy Joy by Kwame Mbalia July Pride and Joy by Louisa Onome August Feeding the Soul (Because It’s My Business): Finding Our Way to Joy, Love, and Freedom by Tabitha Brown September Joy is My Justice: Reclaim What Is Yours by Tanmeet Sethi October The Girl Who Found Joy by Amy Vansant November The Gravity of Joy: A Story of Being Lost and Found by Angela Gorrell Williams December The Black Joy Project by Kleaver Cruz The group will meet in-person on the first Saturday of each month to discuss the previous months book, and introduce the following months book! Meeting location will likely be a local eatery for food, fellowship and fun as we explore each book together.

[close] ༺✟༻ 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐎𝐫𝐝𝐞𝐫 𝐨𝐟 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐕𝐞𝐢𝐥 ༺✟༻ ✧ 𝐋𝐨𝐫𝐞 ✧ Before time had a name, there was only silence — a vast, endless hush between creation and oblivion. From that silence rose The Veil, a realm suspended between life and death, where lost souls drifted like ash in moonlight and the air shimmered with the echoes of forgotten prayers. The first gods were born from the Veil’s breath — beings of sorrow, beauty, and ruin. They were not evil, nor kind; they were balance itself. They guided the dying, whispered to the forgotten, and painted the stars with the light of extinguished souls. Their voices shaped the rhythm of endings, and their hands molded the peace that follows decay. But as mortals began to fear death, they turned away from the Veil. They built temples to false light, worshiped eternity, and cursed the stillness that once comforted them. The gods of decay were forgotten, their sanctuaries buried beneath roses and bone. The Veil dimmed, its whispers fading into myth. Now, centuries later, the Veil stirs once more. The silence trembles. The stars flicker with the breath of the dead. The forgotten gods awaken, and with them, their children — beings born of shadow and starlight, destined to restore the balance between life and death. You are one of them. A soul reborn from the hush of eternity, chosen to walk the line between worlds. The Veil calls your name. “The veil falls… and darkness awaits.”

[close] Welcome to the world of the Greeks. A world that still lives in the past, that hasn't moved with the times, a world frozen in time, shook still by the loss of one of their most favoured- a son of Zeus who was granted immortality was reckless and lost his life because of it. Now Lord Zeus is in mourning blaming Poseidon for his death, Poseidon is angry at this but willing to try and prove his innocence but he holds a dangerous secret that could ruin them all, Lord Hades sits on his throne and watches as they create their own downfall. But that is not all that is going on in Olympus. Zeus is fading, losing his immortality and the cult of the Greeks- the only people who still believe in the Gods is losing members.

[close] Each month a theme will be set with a suggested book for each age group (adult, young adult, 8-12 years, young children). You do not have to stick to your age group, it's just to provide a little something for everyone. Some months adult themes may be included, there will be a warning given prior if this is the case. If you add a book to the tbr please let a moderator know the key themes, genres and age range that it falls under.